I was originally interested in Tupac because I started noticing his music coming up on more and more of the playlists I was listening to. The song that I have chosen is California Love.
Lyrics: "California Love"
(feat. Dr. Dre, Roger Troutman)
[Roger Troutman:]
California love
California knows how to party
California knows how to party
In the city of L.A
In the city of good ol' Watts
In the city, the city of Compton
We keep it rockin', we keep it rockin'
[Dr. Dre:]
Now let me welcome everybody to the wild, wild west
A state that's untouchable like Eliot Ness
The track hits your eardrum like a slug to your chest
Pack a vest for your Jimmy in the city of sex
We in that sunshine state where the bomb-ass hemp be
The state where you never find a dance floor empty And pimps be on a mission for them greens Lean mean money-making-machines serving fiends I been in the game for 10 years making rap tunes Ever since honeys was wearing Sassoon Now it's '95 and they clock me and watch me Diamonds shining, looking like I robbed Liberace It's all good, from Diego to the Bay Your city is the bomb if your city making pay Throw up a finger if you feel the same way
Dre putting it down for Californ-i-a [Roger Troutman:]
California knows how to party California knows how to party (Yes, they do) In the city of L.A In the city of good ol' Watts In the city, the city of Compton We keep it rockin', we keep it rockin' [Roger Troutman:] Shake, shake it, baby Shake, shake it, mama Shake it Cali, shake it shake it baby
Shake it, shake it, shake it, shake it [2Pac:] Out on bail, fresh out of jail, California dreaming Soon as I step on the scene, I'm hearing hoochies screaming Fiending for money and alcohol The life of a Westside player where cowards die and the strong ball Only in Cali where we riot not rally to live and die In L.A. we wearing Chucks not Ballys (yeah, that's right) Dressed in Locs and Khaki suits, and ride is what we do Flossing, but have caution: we collide with other crews Famous because we throw grams Worldwide, let them recognize from Long Beach to Rosecrans Bumping and grinding like a slow jam, it's Westside So you know the row won't bow down to no man Say what you say, but give me that bomb beat from Dre Let me serenade the streets of L.A From Oakland to Sac-town, the Bay Area and back down Cali is where they put their mack down Give me love! [Roger Troutman:] California knows how to party California knows how to party (Yes, they do)
In the city of L.A In the city of good ol' Watts In the city, the city of Compton We keep it rockin' [Dr. Dre:] South Central [2Pac:] Uh, that's right
[Dr. Dre:] Now make it shake [Roger Troutman:] Shake, shake it, baby Shake, shake it, mama Shake it Cali, shake it shake it baby Shake it, shake it, shake it, shake it [Dr. Dre:] Shake it Cali Uh, uh, West Coast Uh, yeah, uh, uh, Long Beach in the house
Uh, yeah, Oaktown, Oakland definitely in the house
Frisco, Frisco
[2Pac:]
And you know L.A. up in here
[Dr. Dre:]
Pasadena where you at?
Yeah, Inglewood
Inglewood always up to no good
[2Pac:]
Even Hollywood trying to get a piece, baby
[Dr. Dre:]
Sacramento, Sacramento where you at?
[2Pac:]
Throw it up ya'll, throw it up, throw it up! I can't see ya Let's show these fools how we do it over on this West Side Cause you and I know it's the best side Yeah, that's right West Coast, West Coast
Background on Tupac: Tupac was born in Brooklyn N.Y. on June 16, 1971. He was born without a father and his mother was part of the black panther party and was being charged with conspiring to bomb several public areas. This is just a small example of how life was like for Tupac.
When Tupac was 12 he enrolled for a theatre program and a year or so later he had a leading role in the play, A raisin in the sun. After that, he always had a love for performing. He then moved to Baltimore where he wrote his first songs in 1986.
When Tupac was 17 he moved to California and enrolled in high school but never finished. In an interview, he says he moved to Baltimore to escape the violence in N.Y. and then moved to California to escape the violence in Baltimore.
He studied poetry and then started his own rap group, Strictly Dope. In 1989 Tupac was discovered by a Digital underground manager and later had his first breakout moment doing a guest verse on a digital underground hit single, same song. Later that year he also came out with
the famous album, 2PAPACALYPSENOW.
Tupac's rap career only lasted 5 years but the impact of his music has is still present today. His career ended in 1996 when he was shot in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas. He died 6 days later.
The song that I am researching is California Love. The song came out in 1996 and was produced by Dr. Dre. Tupac was the original singer and did write the music and lyrics for the song along with Dr. Dre and some others. I think Tupac created California Love because after moving multiple times, California is where he ended up wanting to stay and that's why he loved it. The song celebrates the lifestyle of how it was to be a 90s hip hop artist, in California. In the song, Tupac and Dr. Dre mention some of the gang violence and crime, but also the innovation and originality of the west coast rap scene. The gangster rap lifestyle did eventually catch up to him when he was shot less than a year later.
The song California Love is still listened to by many people and is one of the main songs that makes up 90s rap. I originally thought Tupac was born in California but it turns out he moved here to escape violence. Overall Tupac was an amazing artist and his career still had not peaked when he died.
Works Cited: 2020. [online] Available at: <https://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/2pac/californialove.html> [Accessed 28 September 2020].
2020. [online] Available at: <https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=J7_bMdYfSws&app=desktop> [Accessed 28 September 2020].
2020. [online] Available at: <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tlESSmfJ8Us> [Accessed 28 September 2020].
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